China business group in UK changes its name

Members of the China Enterprises Association in Britain voted on Monday to change its name to the China Chamber of Commerce in the UK.

The name change came about as the organization strives to provide more professional services for its member businesses, as a consequence of the growing numbers and importance of Chinese business in the UK.

Whereas the 'association' name implies a lose structure for the organization, the 'chamber' name implies a more professional structure focusing mainly on business, said Lin Ning, executive vice chairman of the organization.

The organization will now complete legal procedures and register the name at Company House in the UK.

Lin said that he hopes the organization will provide more professional services for its members in the future.

Founded in 2002, the organization currently has around 170 member businesses, of which two thirds are Chinese businesses in the UK, and the rest are British companies that do business with China.

It provides a wide variety of services, ranging from helping businesses to solve practical problems they encounter, to providing assistance to companies' expatriate employees on day to day needs such as healthcare and education.

The meeting also saw member companies voting for a new logo, which shows a large pillar in the middle and circular shapes surrounding it on both sides in the shape of the letter 'C'.

The pillar in the new logo symbolizes the organization's ability to stand tall, and the circular shape symbolizes globalization of the Chinese companies.

Jin Xu, minister counselor of the economic and commercial office of China's embassy in Britain, said that the name change is very significant as it reflects Chinese business' increasing importance in the UK.

Business and investment links between the UK and China continue to strengthen despite the ups and down in markets across the world, Jin said.

According to official statistics, bilateral trade has doubled since 2009, and the growth rate in 2014 was the fastest among European countries. The target for 2015 is $100 billion. The UK is China's second-largest trading partner in the European Union.

To contact the reporter: cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com